Dear Parent / Carer
Year 11s and 13s are now in the midst of their exams and we are so proud of how they are conducting themselves. We know they have a number of exams still left to do, but we want to thank you for your support with making sure they balance their spare time with revision and having time to unwind and relax!
I promised to provide more details for year 8 and 9 families about our plans to get them into school for a few hours next week. We are only able to do this whilst year 11 students are in the main hall sitting exams as we will be using the spare classrooms to house year 8 and 9 students. As years 11 and 13 start to finish their exams, we will have more space available to house students more consistently.
Below you will find the initial details for the next two weeks of school regarding the return of year 8 and 9 students. I will provide more dates in future newsletters as all of our plans are subject to change whilst we work closely with the Department for Education. For the morning sessions (periods 1 and 2), students will be expected to arrive at school at the normal time. They will have an assembly in the lecture theatre to hear the health and safety notices, and to find out about where their lessons will take place. For the afternoon sessions, students will need to arrive at school at 12pm so they can be told where their lessons will be. Students will have the option to purchase food at break if they wish. Students will then need to leave the site via the reception entrance. The Spencer park entrance will not be opened so we can maintain the safety of all other students on site.
Students can easily identify which band they are in by looking at the name of their maths group in Google Classroom. Your child's maths group name will begin with either '8a', '8b', '9a', or '9b’. Students who are not in school will continue to have remote learning in place.
- Tuesday 20th May: Half of year 8 (8a) and half of year 9 (9b) for periods 1 and 2. Remote learning will resume from period 4.
- Friday 23rd May: Half of year 8 (8b) and half of year 9 (9a) for periods 1 and 2. Remote learning will resume from period 4.
- Monday 2nd June: Half of year 8 (8a) and half of year 9 (9a) for periods 4 and 5. Remote learning for periods 1 and 2 only.
- Wednesday 4th June: Half of year 8 (8b) and half of year 9 (9b) for periods 4 and 5. Remote learning for periods 1 and 2 only.
- Friday 6th June:
- Half of year 8 (8a) and half of year 9 (9b) for periods 1 and 2. Remote learning will resume from period 4.
- Half of year 8 (8b) and half of year 9 (9a) for periods 4 and 5. Remote learning for periods 1 and 2 only.
We will continue to share information through our newsletters, via social media, and through the MCAS app.
As a result of the building issues we have lost access to four recently upgraded IT suites. This has had a huge impact on the curriculum we have been able to deliver for students as a significant number of option subjects require access to high quality IT equipment. We are extremely grateful to Deloitte who have confirmed this week that they are able to donate 50 laptops to the school to help create new mobile IT suites in school. This is going to positively impact our curriculum provision and support those students in year 10 who need regular access to IT. Thank you!
On Wednesday evening this week, Mrs Brainwood and three students participated in an evening meal at the John White Golf Club to share feedback on the “Prison, Me? No Way!” project that we run in partnership with the Rotary Club. The team did us proud, and it was lovely to read the email from the students who shared this kind message:
“We all just wanted to say thank you for choosing us to represent year 9, we all hope we made you both and the school proud. You gave us all an opportunity that not many get the chance to even have the option to experience so we all just wanted to thank you for believing in us and seeing the potential in us.”
Finally, whilst things have been tough in school for staff and students, it has been amazing to see the engagement we have had from students in our Rushden TREAT activities. We started off with the Rushden Band, then moved onto Desert Island Survivors, before having the Team Rushden Olympics this week. Please keep an eye on our social channels for pictures and updates of how our #TeamRushden winners look after a little AI intervention!
Once again, I would like to thank you all for your continued support of the school. Please know that if you have any questions or concerns you can reach out to the school using our email address, or by calling the school on 01933 350391. We will always endeavour to get back to you within 48 hours.
We hope you all have a great weekend and we are excited to see everyone next week!
Yours sincerely,
Mr J Firth
Principal
